Stairway construction



Oct. 26, 1965 c. M. NEHER STAIRWAY CONSTRUCTION 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 25, 1962 INVENTOR Clar c0 M/Veher ayd :4

ATTORNEY Oct. 26, 1965 c. M. NEHER 3,213,579

STAIRWAY cous'rnucnou Filed 001;. 25, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTORNE Y v (Iron 0 M. Nehor United States Patent 3,213,579 STAIRWAY CONSTRUCTION Clarence M. Neher, 861 Delgado Drive, Baton Rouge, La. Filed Oct. 23, 1962, Ser. No. 232,507 8 Claims. (Cl. 52-187) This invention relates to a novel stairway construction. More particularly, this invention relates to a stairway construction possessing, inter alia, the following advantageous features:

1) It can be fabricated from relatively inexpensive, readily available materials of construction, all of the component parts being susceptible to prefabrication, if desired;

(2) The component parts are compact and thus can be stored, shipped and handled with relative ease;

(3) It is easy to assemble and install;

(4) It possesses a diversity of applications, e.g., the same basic components may be used in the construction of straight stairways, curved stairways, U-shaped stairways, serpentine stairways, and the like;

(5) Once installed, it is easy to maintain; and

(6) It has decorative appeal.

As is well known, in the construction of new homes and in the rehabilitation of older homes stairways are generally built on the job utilizing standardized modes or plans of construction. Such construction methods are costly, time-consuming and sometimeswasteful of materials and consequently, as is characteristic of the homebuilding art in general, the use of prefabricatable parts is a desideratum.

While certain types of stairways known heretofore were susceptible of prefabrication, nonetheless these were of generally limited utility. For example, while it is possible to prefabricate parts for a spiral staircase, these parts are unsuited for use in erecting curved, serpentine, U-shaped, angular, or linear stairways. Hence, there has been a distinct need in the art for a stairway construction which is susceptible of the use of prefabricatable components, components which can be readily utilized in the erection of various and sundry stairway modes or plans, such as those noted above.

It is an object of this invention to fulfill the foregoing need while at the same time providing a stairway construction having a number of other advantageous features, including those enumerated hereinabove. Another object is to provide a tread construction which is especially adapted for use in my novel and useful stairway constructions. These and other objects of this invention will appear more fully by inspection of the ensuing description and the accompanying figures of the drawings.

Referring to the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective or isometric view of a preferred arrangement of the elements of my stairway construction illustrating a number of the advantageous features characterizing this invention;

FIGURE 2 is a top view of a general plan showing, at one and the same time, several typical arrangements of the basic component parts making up several embodi ments of this invention;

FIGURE 3 is a side elevation of a preferred arrangement of the basic elements making up my stairway construction;

FIGURE 4 is a top plan of a rectangular tread;

FIGURE 5 is a cross sectional view taken along line AA of FIGURE 4 showing a subcombination useful in the overall stairway construction and demonstrating the cooperation among the basic elements of the subcombination and another basic element used in the overall construction; and

FIGURE 6 is an end view of a tread such as shown in FIGURE 4 and illustrating a subcombination of this invention involving in part a means of attaching a tread cover to the tread.

As will be seen from FIGURE 1, this invention in its broadest sense is a stairway construction which comprises a plurality of treads 10 which are individually and independently suported in the ascending/descending relation ship of a stairway by a corresponding number of individual pole-like support members 20. The treads and the support members may be made of wood, metal, reinforced plastics, ceramics, or like materials of sufficient structural strength and rigidity to serve the intended purposes and functions of a stairway. The treads may be uncoveredi.e., stained or varnished oak, aluminum or anodized aluminum, etc., may constitute the exposed surfaces of the treadsor they may be partially or totally covered by rubber mats, vinyl and related plastic tiles or sheeting, cork surfacing, carpeting, or the like. In cross section, the support members may be circular or cylindrical, square, triangular, oval, rectangular, pentagonal, hexagonal, octagonal, star-shaped or the like, depending upon the decorative effect desired. A particularly convenient material for use in fabricating the support members is wrought iron black pipe (approximately three inches in diameter) which is commonly used to support I-beams in house construction and which therefore affords a cylindrical cross section.

The treads may be aflixed to their corresponding support members at any desired locus on the underside of the treads provided, of course, that both the materials of construction of the treads and support members and of the means selected for attaching the respective treads to the respective support members at the selected locus have sufl'icient structural and mechanical strength to withstand the stresses and strains, and vectoral forces which are encountered when the resultant stairway is put to use. It is preferable, as shown by FIGURE 1, to affix each support member to its corresponding tread at essentially the center of the underside of the tread so as to form a plurality of T-shaped steps. In this way the stresses, strains, and vectoral forces encountered during use are most evenly distributed. Moreover, this mode of attachment is generally the easiest to install and provides an overall decorative effect which is most pleasing to the eye.

To accommodate stairway traffic most expeditiously and to conserve materials of construction, the treads have a general configuration such that they possess a long axis which is transverse to the line of flight, i.e., when viewed from the direction of traffic the individual treads are longer from left to right than they are from front to back. However, in the construction of stairways to fit snugly in the corner of a room or in other instances where a sharp degree alteration in the trafiic pattern is desired, a generally square-shaped tread may be provided at a point, say, essentially intermediate to the line of flight to serve as a landing, the length of the sides of the landing tread being generally equivalent to the length of the transverse axes of the treads leading up to the landing and of the treads proceeding upward from the landing in a direction 90 degrees or so from the direction of said firstnamed treads.

In arranging the basic components of my stairway construction, it is preferable to orient the foregoing transverse axes substantially perpendicularly to an imaginary line connecting the centers of the support members as such an arrangement provides greater safety and insures most efiicient use of space. In short, a preferred embodiment of this invention is a stairway construction which comprises a plurality of treads and a corresponding number of individual pole-like support members, each tread being aflixed to the upper end of one of said members so as to form a plurality of T-shaped steps, each succeeding support member differing in length from its preceding support member by the height of a step, the T-shaped steps being arranged in the ascending/descending relationship of a stairwa the tranverse axis of each tread being substantially perpendicular to an imaginary line connecting the centers of said support members.

FIGURE 2 illustrates several preferred arrangements involving the foregoing perpendicular arrangement. The overall top view plan of this figure shows a horseshoe or semicircular arrangement of the steps or treads 10 and 12 relative to the imaginary line 14 which connects the centers of the support members 20. Segment A of FIGURE 2 shows a straight line arrangement of my individually and independently supported treads and it will be understood, of course, that when a completely straight stairway is desired Segment A is simply extended in a straight line by implementing it with a sufficient number of rectangular treads 1t) afiixed to the progressively longer pole-like support members 20 to achieve the desired height. Segment B of FIGURE 2 illustrates an arcuate arrangement of the steps which enables the achievement of a 90 degree turn in traffic pattern without the necessity of using a sharp turn or a massive landing. These advantageous features are made possible by the inclusion in the stairway construction of treads 12 having the general configuration of elongated keystones. In all of the above cases involving FIGURE 2 the longitudinal or transverse axes 16 of the treads 10 and 12 are substantially perpendicular to the imaginary line 14 at the points of intersection.

FIGURE 2 further illustrates the numerous flight or traffic patterns made possible by this invention. Hence, as noted above, extension of Segment A provides a linear pattern. It is preferable however to arrange at least a portion of the pole-like support members 20 so that the imaginary line 14 connecting their centers includes an arc, as in Segment B. This makes possible a wide variety of patterns, conserves materials of construction, simplifies installation, accommodates varying and diverse spatial requirements, all with the use of two basic types of treadsviz., the rectangular tread 10 and the elongated keystone shaped tread 12. Hence, combination of Segment B with Segment A-e.g., (in ascending order) AB, BA, ABA-provides a gentle, safe 90 degree turn while eliminating the need for bulky, unattractive, difficulty-supportable landings. Other patterns include the alternation or periodic alternation of thread-types 10 and 12, as in 10, 12, 10, 12, 10 or 10, 10, 12, 10, 10, 12, 10, 1t) arrangements. Further, to achieve a serpentine stairway, two arcuate segments (e.g., all or a portion ofSegment B)are combined in serpentine or S- type arrangement. And, as shown by the arrangement depicted in FIGURE 2, smooth semicircular stairway constructions are readily installed utilizing the physicomechanical concepts of this invention. Other patterns, arrangements, and variants of those depicted in FIGURE 2 and discussed above will now be apparent to those skilled in the art.

To further enhance the safety features of my stairway construction, I prefer to position the T-shaped steps such that when viewed from a point directly overhead the upper surfaces of the treads form an essentially contiguous surface. Such an arrangement is also shown in FIGURE 2. By virtue of this arrangement the maximum surface area of the treads is supplied to the user of the stairway. Especially noteworthy is the fact that this preferred arrangement eliminates or at least essentially precludes the possibility of the heels of highheeled shoes becoming caught behind the trailing edge of the tread as the fashionable lady descends the stairway, an important safety consideration particularly in these days of the spiked heel shoe.

My most particularly preferred arrangement of the treads is to provide an overhang between each successive step. In other words, the leading edge of each tread most preferably overhangs the trailing edge of the next lower tread such that the angle formed between a line prependicularly connecting said edges and a horizontal line is between about 45 and about degrees. Such an embodiment is depicted in FIGURE 3, the angle a falling within the preferred limits just described. Putting the matter another Way, it is very desirable to arrange the successive individually and independently supported treads so that the length by which each successively higher tread overhangs its predecessor is from 20 to 100 percent of the vertical distance between the treads. For example, particularly good results are achieved in stairway constructions in 'which the angle on ranges from about 55 to about 80 degrees or in which the length (or depth) of overhang ranges from about 20 to about 60 percent of said vertical distance. It is particularly convenient to provide a two to three inch overhang with rectangular treads measuring 3 feet by 1 foot which are separated in successive vertical juxtaposition by 5 to 7 inches, 5 inches being most preferable. The benefits reaped by this particularly preferred overhang arrangement are important. In the first place the stairway tends to be compact and yet the available tread surface of each step is entirely adequate from safety and convenience standpoints. Secondly, the heels of high-heeled shoes cannot engage or slip behind the trailing edges of the steps as the stairway is descended. Thirdly, as the stairway is ascended the user is given the reassuring impression of a closed stairway as he views his feet because for a person of average height the angle between his line of sight and the horizontal exceeds angle a. Therefore the ascender, be he unsteady of foot or prone to dizziness, should not be uncomfortable in using my particularly preferred embodiment involving overhang. Fourthly, the individual treads are easily swept, vacuumed, brushed or scrubbed because not only is there no riser behind or at the sides of the tread to interfere with these cleaning operations (a characteristic of any of my embodiments) but the extent of the overhang provides no interference either. And on top of these features, the treads may be readily re-covered, re-painted or re-stained in order, for example, to accommodate changes in the decor of the room (another advantage of any of my embodiments) without interference by the overhang.

Preferred tread configurations are rectangular treads and wedge-shaped or keystone-shaped trends in which the angle of convergence (i.e., the angle defined by the intersection of a pair of straight lines extending from the leading and the trailing edges, respectively) is approximately 22 to 23 degrees so that 4 of such pre-shaped treads will provide a degree turn. Typical dimensions for these units are rectangular treads 3 feet wide and 1 foot deep and corresponding keystone-shaped treads measuring 3 feet on the leading and trailing edges, approximately one-half foot on the short side and approximately 1 /2 feet on the long side. On the other hand, other dimensions may be used, if desired, so that the angle of convergence may range from about 15 to about 35 degrees, or more. As noted above, these basic components make possible the installation of a wide variety of different stairway configurations. The height or thickness of the treads is largely governed by the material(s) from which they are fabricated. Wooden treads 1.5 inches thick have afforded excellent results in use.

FIGURES 4 and 5 depict a typical means of attaching the treads to their corresponding pole-like support members. In essence, these means are detachably attachable to the tread and engage and aflix the tread onto the upper end of the pole-like support member. Referring particularly to FIGURES 4 and 5 (4 being a top view and 5 a frontal sectional view) the upper end of the pole 20 is inserted into a cylinder 22 which in turn is immovably fastened at its upper end to a flange 24. For best results the inner diameter of cylinder 22 is equal to or slightly in excess of the outer diameter of pole 20. Tread rests upon the upper surface of flange 24 and is detachably attached thereto in fixed relationship by means of bolts 26 passing through vertically aligned apertures 28 and 30 in the tread and flange, respectively, the nuts 32 completing and securing the attachment. To provide a smooth upper surface on tread 10 the heads of bolts 26 are countersunk into the apertures 28 to the appro-' priate extent and may be covered by a tread matching filler material or a tread cover if desired. Cylinder 22 is secured upon the upper end of pole so as to resist forces in any direction by any appropriate means such as by welding or soldering the cylinder onto the pipe, use of high strength cements or adhesives between the connecting surfaces of the cylinder and the pole; employment of screws, nuts and bolts, pegs, or the like to establish a union between the cylinder to the pipe; threading the upper end of the pipe and providing a cylinder having the corresponding female thread so that a pipe-thread joint is provided, or the like.

It is of particular advantage to supply for assembly during the installation of the stairway the subcombination of the above-described treads and the means to be detachably attached thereto to secure the treads upon the upper ends of the pole-like support members. In this way storage and shipping space are kept to a minimum and the installer is afforded the additional flexibility of attaching such means to whatever appropriate locus on the underside of the tread as he finds advantageous for his particular stairway arrangement. Furthermore, after installation the treads can readily be removed at any time for the purpose of re-covering or re-finishing them. Thereupon the re-covered or re-finished treads can be reinstalled very expeditiously to again provide a stable, durable stairway.

A particularly preferred subcombination of this invention is a tread construction especially adapted for use in stairway construction involving individual and independent support of the tread on the upper end of a polelike support member which comprises, in combination, a tread, a tread cover and means detachably attachable to said tread to engage and aflix said tread onto said upper end and to engage with said cover and aflix the same onto said tread. FIGURE 6 represents this subcombination is one of its most elemental forms. The upper end of pole 20 is inserted into cylinder 22 which in turn is immovably fastened at its upper end to flange 24. Tread cover 38 is folded tightly upon tread 10 so that its underside is bisected by seam 34 formed between the ends of the cover. The so-covered tread is impressed upon the upper surface of flange 24 and is detachably attached thereto in fixed relationship by means of bolts 26 passing through vertically aligned apertures in the tread, tread cover and flange, respectively, in a similar fashion to the bolting arrangement of FIGURE 5, the nuts 32 securing the attachment. Cylinder 22 is fastened to pole 20 as discussed above in relation to FIGURES 4 and 5. It will be seen that the attachment means composed of cylinder 22, flange 24, bolts 26 and nuts 32 cooperate to serve a dual function, viz., to detachably attach the tread 10 to pole 20 and to keep tread cover 38 tightly aflixed to the tread 10 without need for supplemental fastening means, such as tacks, adhesives, or the like. It thereupon becomes a very simple matter to replace the foldable or wrappable tread cover 38 in the event of excessive wear or the desire to change the type or color of the same, this being accomplished by loosening nuts 32 and concurrently lifting tread 10 and tread cover 38 from flange 24. As noted above, FIGURE 6 depicts this embodiment in its simplest form and it will be apparent that by appropriately cutting and folding the tread cover, the tread can be entirely encased and held in place by the force created between the tread and the flange when the nuts and bolts or equivalent securing means are tightened. It will also be manifestly clear that padding may be introduced between tread cover 38 and tread 10 and held securely in place by this particular force.

As will be evident by examination of FIGURES 4, 5 and 6, the number and location of apertures 28 and 30 may be varied to accommodate various needs and situations, so long, of course, as they are in respective vertical alignment. The provision of two so-aligned pairs of apertures on opposite sides of the flange 24 along with a pair of nuts and bolts as shown in FIGURE 6 will generally be suflicient to result in a construction which upon being secured and fastened will resist forces tending to cause rotation of the tread on the upper surface of the pole-like support member 20. However, three or four, or more such vertically aligned pairs of apertures may be provided to enable even greater resistance to rotational moments when a nut and bolt are used with each. Here again it is desirable to space the apertures 30 at essentially equal circumferential distances from each other in the flange 24 as shown in FIGURE 4. Such an arrangement has the additional advantage when used in the preferred subcombination illustrated in FIGURE 6 in that these additional points of attachment tend further to secure and hold the tread cover 38 in place.

Other equivalent means for detachably attaching the treads to the pole-like support members will now be apparent to those skilled in the art.

It will be evident that the bottom end of the pole-like support members of the stairway construction of this invention may be fastened to the floor by any suitable method. Immersion of the bottom ends of the poles to a suitable depth in the wet concrete used to form concrete slabs is one convenient method. Other suitable methods include the use of brackets or braces fastened to or through the floor, and the like. The poles may be presupplied in appropriate varying lengths or they may be cut to suitable lengths on the job so as to provide vertical distances between successive steps ranging from about 5 to about 10 inches or more.

It is advantageous, as shown by FIGURE 1, to provide a pair of banisters generally following the pattern formed by the ends of the treads and extending upwards therefrom at a suitable height to be readily gripped by the hand as the stairway is used.

As many widely different embodiments and modifications are possible within the ambit of this invention, I do not intend to be limited unduly by the foregoing description and accompanying drawings of what I consider to be the best modes of carrying out this invention. As an example of a modified embodiment, the ends and/or the leading and trailing edges of the treads may be rounded in a convex or concave manner, depending upon the decorative effect desired. By the same token, the ends of the keystone-shaped treads 12 may be curved when viewed from above such that the arcs generally parallel the center line 14 of FIGURE 2. These and other modifications will now be apparent to those skilled in the art.

What is claimed is:

1. A stairway construction which comprises a plurality of treads which are longer from side to side than they are from front to back and a corresponding number of individual pole-like support members, each tread being affixed to the upper end of one of said members so as to form a plurality of T-shaped steps, each succeeding support member differing in length from its preceding support member by the height of a step, the T-shaped steps being arranged in the ascending/descending relationship of a stairway such that the lateral axis of each tread is transverse to the line of flight of the stairway and is substantially perpendicular to an imaginary line connecting the centers of said support members, each such tread being free from direct physical connection with the succeeding tread, the leading edge of each tread overhanging the trailing edge of the next lower tread such that the angle formed between a line perpendicularly connecting said edges and a horizontal line is between about 45 and about 85 degrees.

2. The construction of claim 1 wherein said T-shaped steps are positioned such that said imaginary line includes an are.

3. The construction of claim 1 wherein said T-shaped steps are positioned such that said imaginary line includes an essentially semicircular arc.

4. The construction of claim 1 wherein said T-shaped steps are positioned such that said imaginary line includes a straight line segment and an arc of about 180, and wherein each of the treads of the T-shaped steps composing said are has a generally trapezoidal configuration when viewed from above.

5. The construction of claim 1 wherein said T-shaped steps are positioned such that said imaginary line is essentially an arc of about 180, and wherein each of the treads composing said are has a generally trapezoidal configuration when viewed from above.

6. A tread construction especially adapted for use in stairway construction involving individual and independent support of the tread on the upper end of a pole-like support member which comprises, in combination, a tread; a tread cover enveloping the tread; a flanged hollow cylinder having a plurality of radially disposed apertures through the flange thereof, the inner diameter of the hollow cylinder being essentially equivalent to the outer diameter of the pole-like support member upon which the tread is to be supported; means operative through said apertures for detachably securing the flange of said cylinder against the adjacent portion of the tread cover and thence to the underside of the tread; and means operative within the hollow cylinder for securing the same onto the upper end of the pole-like support member.

7. A stairway construction which comprises a plurality of treads which are longer from side to side than they are from front to back; a tread cover enveloping each such tread; a plurality of individual pole-like support members corresponding in number to the number of treads; individual attachment means detachably secured to each tread engaging and aflixing the same onto the upper end of one of said members, said means simultaneously engaging a portion of the tread cover enveloping that tread and detachably affixing said cover onto that tread; the height of each successive pole-like support member differing from its preceding support member by the height of a step, the treads and their corresponding support members being in the ascending/descending relationship of a stairway such that the lateral axis of each tread is transverse to the line of flight of the stairway and is substantially perpendicular to an imaginary line connecting the centers of said support members, each such tread being free from direct physical connection with the succeeding tread, the treads and their corresponding support members being positioned such that the leading edge of each tread overhangs the trailing edge of the next lower tread such that the angle formed between a line perpendicularly connecting said edges and a horizontal line is between about 45 and about degrees.

8. A stairway construction which comprises a plurality of treads individually and independently supported in the ascending/descending relationship of a stairway by a corresponding number of individual supports composed of wrought iron pipe approximately three inches in diameter, each such tread being free from direct physical connection with the succeeding tread and being separated therefrom in vertical distance by from about 5 to 7 inches, each of said supports being aflixed at essentially the center of the underside of the tread, said treads comprising rectangular treads approximately 3 feet wide and 1 foot deep and trapezoidal treads measuring approximately 3 feet on the leading and trailing edges, approximately one-half foot on the short side and approximately 1.5 feet on the long side, the treads and their respective supports being positioned such that the leading edge of each tread overhangs the trailing edge of the next lower tread such that the angle formed between a line perpendicularly connecting said edges and a horizontal line is between about 45 and about 85 degrees.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 107,482 9/70 Gould. 323,646 8/85 Duncan 189-43 372,941 11/87 Sperry 2079 X 705,794 7/02 Snider 18944 1,776,510 9/30 Keys et al.

FOREIGN PATENTS 93,277 1923 Austria. 554,611 1957 Belgium. 1,271,996 1961 France.

27,526 1909 Sweden.

OTHER REFERENCES Sheet Metal Worker, June 1948, page 56.

FRANK L. ABBOTT, Primary Examiner.

JACOB L. NACKENOFF, Examiner. 

1. A STAIRWAY CONSTRUCTION WHICH COMPRISES A PLURALITY OF TREADS WHICH ARE LONGER FROM SIDE TO SIDE THAN THEY ARE FROM FRONT TO BACK AND A CORRESPONDING NUMBER OF INDIVIDUAL POLE-LIKE SUPPORT MEMBERS, EACH TREAD BEING AFFIXED TO THE UPPER END OF ONE OF SAID MEMBERS SO AS TO FORM A PLURALITY OF T-SHAPED STEPS, EACH SUCCEEDING SUPPORT MEMBER DIFFERING LENGTH FROM ITS PRECEEDING SUPPORT MEMBER BY THE HEIGHT OF A STEP, THE T-SHAPED STEPS BEING ARRANGED IN THE ASCENDING-DESCENDING RELATIONSHIP OF A STAIRWAY SUCH THAT THE LATERAL AXIS OF EACH TREAD IS TRANSVERSE TO THE LINE OF FLIGHT OF THE STAIRWAY AND IS SUBSTANTIALLY PERPENDICULAR TO AN IMAGINARY LINE CONNECTING THE CENTERS OF SAID SUPPORT MEMBERS, EACH SUCH TREAD BEING FREE FROM DIRECT PHYSICAL CONNECTION WITH THE SUCCEEDING TREAD, THE LEADING EDGE OF EACH TREAD OVERHANGING THE TRAILING EDGE OF THE NEXT LOWER TREAD SUCH THAT THE 